Best Car Insurance Questions and Answers June 2009

Q. Can you drive legally with no car insurance if you have full driving licence?

A. No - by law, any driver or owner of a car, motorcycle, van, lorry or any other kind of motor vehicle must be insured to drive on a public highway.

The exception to this is if you are driving a vehicle that does not belong to you, and is not hired to you under a hire purchase agreement, and you have the vehicle owner's permission.

The car insurance cover is usually Third Party only which covers injury and damage to third parties but not damage to the vehicle you are driving. This cover was designed to be used in emergency situations only.

You can drive on private land or private road without insurance as long as you have the permission of the land/road owner.

Q. Is Pass Plus worth it? I'm 17 and passed my test a few months ago. Just wondered if it is worth doing Pass Plus. How much will I save on car insurance, on my mums policy or on my own?

A. Yes it is - you will qualify for up to 30% discount on your first year's car insurance so it is like getting 1 year no claims bonus straight away.

Q. Hi all, I have a general car insurance question but haven't been able to find an answer online. My girlfriend and I each have our own homes and spend time at both. When getting a car insurance quote it became clear that the same cover would cost significantly less if I insured at her home rather than my own (where my licence is registered). Would I be correct in assuming I can insure my car at her address and, if so, would I need to change my licence to reflect this? Are there any set rules I need to be aware of? Thanks

A. Your licence and car insurance need to be registered to your main place of residence so, unless you are planning on moving in with your girlfriend permanently, this is a no go unfortunately.

Q. My relative gave me her car to drive for one year. Can I buy car insurance without changing the car owner's name? One of my relatives is not going to drive her car for one year. She gave her car to me to drive. Can I buy an insurance policy as a policyholder without changing the owner's name?

A. No problem at all - just explain the circumstances to the car insurance company or broker.

It may be cheaper to get insured with your relative as the main policyholder and you as a named driver.

Q. Getting someone else on car insurance? How does that work? My boyfriend is getting a car and he is going to get it insured and everything but we're wondering if he can put me on his car insurance, too? And how would that process work?

A. This is no problem at all - your boyfriend just needs to tell the car insurance company or broker when he gets a quote. He will be able to get two quotes, one including you as a named driver and one without so you can see exactly how much it will cost to add you to the policy.